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Coke-Addled Dad Left Three Young Sons In Freezing Car While He Watched Football Game

By Shelley Hazen
Published on: 23:57 PST, Jan 19, 2016

A young father of three went to a friend’s house Saturday night to watch a football game, and at some point, allegedly pounded the cocaine and alcohol. Meanwhile, his three little boys — the oldest 7 and the youngest 9 months — were left in the car as temperatures dipped to 30 degrees.

Not only did the father, identified as James Grusofski, 33, from Pennsylvania, leave his three sons in the car while he enjoyed the game, he also drove home without one of them, according to the Observer-Reporter.

It’s not clear when Grusofski headed to his friend’s house to watch the NFL playoffs, Penn Live reported. According to police, the young father left his three sons in the freezing car and went inside to watch the game for an unknown amount of time.

When the night was over, he drove home. And that’s when he discovered that one of his three sons was missing. At some point during the evening, while his dad was otherwise occupied, the 4-year-old left the car.

Meanwhile, the authorities were called by residents of a nearby street who heard a child yelling into the night. When officers found the boy, at about 9:45 p.m., he was wandering around outside in below-freezing temperatures.

And he wasn’t wearing a coat, shoes, or socks.

Officers tried to track down the kid’s parents, to no avail. He was taken to the station, and child welfare services were called. Luckily, someone was already looking for the boy — his mother and grandmother.

An hour after the child was found by cops, cold and alone on the street, both women had reported him missing. The boy was reunited with his mom and grandma after what was surely a scary night.

And that’s when police learned the full story, although it’s not clear if the mother — who is also fiancée to Grusofski — heard the story directly from him or not. Either way, officers heard that the young child had been alone in the street because his dad had allegedly left all three sons in the car while he watched a football game, took drugs, and drank booze.

The situation escalated when James himself arrived at the station and reportedly admitted to drinking. It’s not clear if he arrived of his own volition or was called by police.

Officers questioned the father about what happened with his three sons that night and allegedly became belligerent when informed that he was going to face criminal charges. Grusofski allegedly tried to punch one officer and tussled with another, informing them he wasn’t going to be arrested.

The scuffle ended when cops used a Taser on him and then took him into custody. Now, he’s facing a slew of charges, including endangering the welfare of children, aggravated assault on a police officer, and resisting arrest.

According to WPXI, James wasn’t taken immediately into custody at the local jail. Instead, he was transported to a hospital because he reportedly had a lot of cocaine and alcohol in his system. He was also injured during the fight with cops.

Meanwhile, a woman who lives near Grusofski, his fiancée, and their three boys was shocked to learn he left his three sons in the car and his resulting arrest. To Renee Scholato, the family seemed happy and both seemed like good parents, she told KDKA.

“It is very surprising this would happen. They were always outside with their children, and they always do things with their children when he’s off work. I see them in the backyard. I think it was too much partying and that’s about it, because they seem like a nice family.”

[Image via Marc Bruxelle/Shutterstock]

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